KINGDOM FALL
— 77. Hardhome

      Beyond the Wall, it had been days since Annalys had fled to Hardhome with Tormund. When they finally reached their destined location, Annalys was shivering severely due to having no cloak. She stood with Tormund in front of a large tent. The two of them turned to each other, exchanging an uneasy look. They both knew there was only two outcomes that could occur due to Annalys' sudden arrival.

"I'm warning you now, Annalys Lannister, you don't want to get on her bad side," Tormund warned Annalys, referring to Freyja, "Freyja is the last person in the Free Folk you want to dislike you."

Annalys remained silent, slowly nodding her head in understanding. Tormund looked down at her, noticing how uneasy she seemed to be, no matter how much she tried to hide it. After all, she was alone, without an army, beyond the Wall in a village filled with tens of thousands of Wildlings that hated her kind.

"Do you trust me?" Tormund asked Annalys, causing to let out a small humorless laugh as she turned to look directly at him.

"Does that make me a fool?" She replied, earning a pat on the back from Tormund.

"We're fools together." He pointed out to Annalys, just before they cautiously entered the large tent.

As they walked in, everyone's heads turned. The large tent was filled with clan chiefs and Annalys even noticed a giant crowded in there as well. Everyone's eyes seemed to lock on Annalys, who looked out of place. After all, she wasn't wearing wildling attire. She was wearing almost no clothing, actually, compared to what the Free Folk wore to save themselves from the cold. She had golden blonde hair, which was rare beyond the Wall. She had a fancy-looking sword sheathed on her belt as well, which was what threw them off most of all.

At that moment, they all realized that Annalys wasn't like them. She wasn't a Free Folk. She belonged to the people who lived South of the Wall.

Annalys glanced around, only to lock eyes on the woman who sat on a throne-like chair directly across from her at the opposite end of the large tent. She immediately recognized the woman to be Freyja. She sat before her, holding a sharp dagger in her hand as she eyed it. She looked bored, Annalys knew that much. She clearly didn't want to be there. Annalys felt like she could relate to that, in a way.

"You must be Freyja," Annalys spoke up, looking directly at the woman, "I am Annalys, of House Lannister."

Annalys didn't bow her head after introducing herself as she usually did. She knew the Free Folk were different. She knew they didn't care about bowing or proper introductions.

"So you're the one who slaughtered three hundred of my warriors with the swing of that swords of yours," Frejya suddenly spoke up, causing Annalys to tense uncomfortably while the wildling queen refused to look away from her dagger, "Anything to say for yourself?"

"I beg your pardon, Your Grace, but I'm pretty sure it was you and Mance who sent them to the Wall in the first place," Annalys bluntly spoke up without thinking, much to Tormund's dismay, "That was what killed him, not I."

Tormund sighed in defeat, realizing her bluntness got the best of her.

Hearing her words, Freyja finally looked up at Annalys, intrigued by how the Lannister woman didn't seem to be afraid about being in a tent filled with Wildlings that would kill her the moment Frejya commanded them to.

Freyja eyed Annalys closely. She had to admit, Annalys was beautiful. Prettier than the majority of the Free Folk she'd seen over the years, that was for sure. She never met anyone with hair as gold as Annalys', nor did she ever believe that there was female warriors South of the Wall. She was told woman South of the Wall wore pretty silk dresses and lived in castles. She was told that their hands were soft as a baby's ass since they'd never held a sword or performed hard labor in their entire lives.

Refusing to think about it anymore, Freyja shook her head slightly, snapping herself out of her thoughts. She looked directly at Annalys, narrowing her eyes at her as she began to speak in a hostile tone, "Do you have an answer for me?" She questioned, causing Annalys to frown at how quickly her expression had changed, "Did you or did you not kill three hundred of my warriors?"

"I lost count after one hundred, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't three hundred," Annalys admitted truthfully, earning an angered glare from Freya, "I was simply trying protect myself and my men from dying. Are you really going to punish me for that?"

"Your men?" Freyja questioned, clearly presuming Annalys to be saying that she was a member of the Night's Watch, "You're a crow?"

"A crow?" Annalys asked, but immediately knew what she meant, causing her to scoff loudly, "Do I look like the type to go celibate?" She questioned, shaking her head in response, "No, the Night's Watch doesn't accept women into their Brotherhood. I was invited there to assist them in the Battle at Castle Black. I brought a fraction of my men to assist me in fighting the Free Folk."

Freyja stared at Annalys closely, seeming to be taken aback that Annalys continuously called them Free Folk instead of Wildlings. It was shocking to her, believe it or not, since she knew everyone South of the Wall called them Wildlings.

"Hundreds of my men were killed that night," Annalys continued on, finding herself almost glaring at Freyja, who chose to believe she was the only one who lost people, "I almost died myself."

"Yet here you stand." Freyja retorted, smiling almost sarcastically.

"Yet here I stand," Annalys replied sarcastically, smiling back at Freyja slightly.

"What is it that you're here, 'Annalys of House Lannister'?" Freyja questioned Annalys, clearly trying to mock the woman.

"I've come to make you an offer," Annalys informed Freyja in a calm tone.

"I don't believe there is a single thing you could offer me that would change the fact that you killed three hundred of my best warriors," Freyja argued, rolling her eyes in annoyance.

"Are you sure?" Annalys suddenly questioned Freyja, who turned to her, looking almost interested in what she had to say, "Safe passage South of the Wall seems well enough."

"Go on," She encouraged Annalys, staring at her closely.

"I know we're not friends, we most likely never will be, but this isn't about friendships. This is about surviving the war that is yet to come against the Army of the Dead," She explained, pausing for a brief moments after noticing that Freyja seemed to be interested in what she had to say, "The White Walkers don't care if a man's Free Folk or a Crow, or just an ordinary person. We're all the same to them. Meat to their army. I don't know about you, but I don't intend to allow myself to become meat to their army."

"Lies, My Queen," The Magnar of Thenns spoke up in the old tongue as he turned to look directly at Freyja, believing Annalys couldn't understand the language, "We can't defeat the White Walkers. No one can. Let me kill her and get this over with."

Annalys turned to the man, smiling slightly since she understood them. High Valyrian wasn't the only language Tywin forced her to learn, that was for sure. Of course, Dothraki and the Old Tongue were the ones she struggled with most, but that didn't mean she didn't know enough to get by. Well, more so the Old Tongue. Her Dothraki was horrible.

"Do that and you'll never survive the White Walkers," Annalys retorted in the Old Tongue, much to everyone's shock.

Freyja's eyes widened at the fact that Annalys knew their language. She was told that no one South of the Wall knew it, not even the people of the North.

Annalys slowly turned back to Freyja, who still looked taken aback. She slowly held up the bag of dragonglass. She immediately began to walk closer to Freyja, only to have two Wildings step in front of her, blocking Annalys' path, "Let her through," She ordered in a stern tone, speaking in the common tongue once more.

The Wildlings hesitantly moved out of the way, allowing Annalys to walk closer to Freyja as she rose from her seat that almost looked like a throne made from branches. Freyja eyed Annalys intently, pondering about whether or not she could trust the woman.

She was told to never trust a crow, but Annalys seemed different. She didn't seem like the men of the Night's Watch who constantly killed her people, her own family included. Annalys reminded of her of someone she used to love very much.

Annalys cautiously pulled out a dagger made out of dragonglass from the bag, holding it out toward Freyja. "It's dragonglass, a gift if you decide to join me," She informed Freyja and the rest of the Wildling chieftains in a calm, yet stern tone, "A man of the Night's Watch used one of these to kill a White Walker."

Hearing Annalys' words, Freyja gave her a curious look, "You witnessed this," She stated, only to frown when Annalys shook her head.

"No, but I trust that he is telling the truth," Annalys answered in a calm tone.

Freyja scanned Annalys' face for any lies, but detected no signs of it. "You said this is a gift for those who join you. Join you in what exactly?" One of the Wildlings closest to where the duo stood asked. Annalys would later learn that her name was Karsi and she was Freyja's closest confidant besides Tormund.

"Join me when the Great War officially begins," Annalys began to explain to the group and Freyja continued to look interested in what she had to say, "If you come with me, I will find you lands South of the Wall, where you may live on and farm. I will make sure the men of the Night's Watch allow you through the tunnel. By now, I assume they've realized what I plan to do. No one will stop me now from doing what I want to do."

She paused, turning away from Freyja as she began to walk around the tent while glancing at each of every one of the wildling chiefs, "The Long Night is on the verge of starting and the dead come with it. No clan can stop them. The Free Folk can't them. Neither can the Night's Watch," She explained in a confident tone, "I plan to take the Iron Throne from Stannis Baratheon when I've brought you all South of the Wall. When I do so, I will make sure that together, we may fight the Army of the Dead and defeat them. We can only to do that if we work together."

Freyja narrowed her eyes at Annalys, trying to see whether or not Annalys was being truthful. "If we ally with you, you must prove that you are worthy of it." She suddenly replied, causing Annalys to frown as she turned to look at Freyja.

"How can I do that?" She questioned Freyja curiously.

"Bring us the head of the man who decided to capture hundreds of Free Folk and take them as his prisoners." Freyja demanded, earning a large smile from Annalys, who knew she meant Stannis.

"Oh, I can do that for you," She replied, beginning to smile at the thought of finally defeating Stannis, "When I come face to face with Stannis Baratheon in the South during my siege, I plan to take his head and mount it on a spike on the Walls of King's Landing to show everyone in Westeros what happens when they try to stand against me."

"You love to claim vengeance, don't you?" Freyja questioned curiously, noticing the hint of genuine joy in Annalys' eyes at the thought of killing Stannis once and for all.

"I do," Annalys responded, nodding her head in confirmation, "Almost as much as I love freedom."

"Down South, you don't get freedom, though, do you?" Freyja asked, recalling hearing stories of the people of the Wall's lack of freedom as lords and ladies of great, big castles.

"As Queen, I have people trying to following me around constantly to keep me out of trouble, but that doesn't mean they succeed. Your King, Mance, claims that that I have the North in me. The real North." Annalys explained, but still didn't know what Mance meant exactly.

She looked toward Freyja, who had a small smile just dying to form on her lips. The Wildling woman, however, forced her lips to remain in a fine line instead of a smile. Annalys smiled at her, which the Free Folk was quick to notice.

Most of them didn't care. The Magnar of Thenns, however, didn't share the same opinion as the rest, "Keep your lies of safe passage and your dragon glass, Queen Crow," He suddenly spoke up, causing Freyja and Annalys to turn to look directly at him instead of at each other, "We've all heard stories of the Blonde Crow. As soon as her ships arrive and we board them, she'll slit our throats and dump our bodies into the Shivering Sea." He paused, pointing directly at Annalys, "That's our enemy. That's always been our enemy."

Hearing the man's words, Freyja found herself rolling her eyes. She might have been their queen, but she always hated the Thenns. Everyone who wasn't a Thenn themselves seemed to, "Believe what you want to believe, but from this day on, Annalys Lannister will be my ally. You should do the same. Either join us or stay here and die."

"I'd rather die," He snarled at Freyja, glaring at her hatefully, "You're no Queen of mine. You never will be. You just want to join her because you find her pretty. Just because you want her inside you, doesn't mean she--"

Before he could finish, however, Freyja tossed her dagger in his direction at full force. Within seconds, the blade of the dagger found its way into his neck. He immediately fell to the floor of the tent, clutching his neck as he fell into a slumber he'd never wake from.

Annalys tried her best to contain her smile, looking impressed by the woman's actions. She watched as Freyja walked over to the dead body, ripping out the bloody dagger before pointing it toward every single person in the tent. "Anyone else like to refuse her offer?" She questioned and not a single person dared to speak up, "Good. Then, we're done here." She ordered and within seconds, everyone had left, all but Freyja, Tormund, and Annalys.

"I fucking hate Thenns," Freyja muttered under her breath, shaking her head at thought of the clan she hated with a burning passion.

Annalys quietly snorted in amusement. As she did so, Freyja turned to her, giving her a stern look, which caused Annalys to shut up. There was a moment of silence as Freyja stared at Annalys, attempting to figure her out. She always good at it, but at that moment, she found herself failing miserably at it.

There was something about Annalys she just couldn't understand and in a way, she found herself drawn to the mystery of it. She wasn't the only one, though, Many others South of the Wall could say the same about the Lannister woman, Robb Stark being one of them.

"You should be lucky you don't have balls," Freyja bluntly spoke up, causing Annalys to frown at her, "If you did, they would have frozen off by now," She paused, gesturing to the fact that Annalys was shivering without her cloak and because she only wore such a thin layer of clothing, "Come with me. As our guest, I will gift you with some clothes to wear during your stay."

Hearing Freyja's words, Annalys looked at Tormund to not ditch her, giving him a look that begged him not to leave her alone with Freyja. Instead, he shrugged, mouthing "Good luck" to her before leaving the tent in the same fashion as the rest of the Free Folk had.

Annalys sighed in defeat, slowly turning to face Freyja. She wasn't scared of Freyja, of course, but there was something about her that made her feel uneasy. After staring at Freyja for a long moment, Annalys' eyes widened, figuring out why being around the woman made her so uncomfortable.

That wasn't the first time Annalys met Freyja. In a way, she met her before. It had been during Melisandre's vision of Annalys in the future. Freyja was the woman Annalys had been traveling beyond the Wall with. There had been a younger girl with them in the vision, too, but Annalys didn't care about that, though.

She only cared about how Melisandre's visions were actually staring to be proven as being the actually truth and not a trick.

If she was correct, she'd be fighting the White Walkers in due time and Robb would be there as well. They'd be standing on a cliff, surrounded by the army of the dead with only the Shivering Sea as a way to escape. How, though? How could Robb be coming?

She had the feeling Robb knew she was beyond the Wall by now, but how did he figure out where she was exactly? Surely, Mance wouldn't have told him. It risked his people. He would never do that. But how else would Robb figure it out? Of course, Annalys hadn't thought about the most valid reason for it.

How did Annalys always figure out the unknown? Her loyal watchman.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Freyja sure has "heard many stories" that originate from south of the wall, despite being a wildling 🤔